All-Star Why Is Cheer Not Widely Considered A Sport?

[Rockstar]

Go.

 

[MissCongeniality]

Because it lacks a specific set of rules, judging and organization. It is definitely athletic, but doesn't meet criteria for "sport"...yet

 

[mommadonna]

Go.

LOL! You're just stirring the pot there! I'm looking forward to all the responses.

 

[mommadonna]

Go.

Actually, I'm thinking it lacks the kind of standardization in criteria. Judging is so subjective... I know it is in many sports, but there isn't a huge deal of calibration among different competition companies, etc. I guess it has to do with what the definition of a sport is. Maybe that definition can vary widely among individuals and groups. Some may say that if a ball isn't involved, it isn't a sport, but that knocks out gymnastics, swimming, wrestling... People call those sports, but... Is running a sport? I know people go to races, marathons, etc, but is it a sport or just an athletic activity? I don't know. I have more questions than answers. To me, cheerleading is a sport, but that is based on my own definition of what a sport is and not an official definition.

 

[ztaprincess]

Cheer is missing too many specifics to classify it as a sport (as stated by MissCongeniality ). NCATA and STUNT are working its way to that, but that is with college cheer. There are certain states that have done with it high school cheer, but with allstar work still needs done.

 

[SharkDad]

Standardization is the main term, but there are many areas:

Safety:
1. There are established rules for protecting youth in all sports but cheerleading does not follow them universally. I.e. background checks and drug testing
2. There should be one set of rules for safety with regards to teaching and executing skills. Certification for coaches, approved surfaces, proper progressions should not be different from Rec, HS, All Star and College. All the skill sets are the same. ALL forms of cheer (Sideline cheer included) need a standardized set of safety rules that doesn't change no matter what leve you are at, then the small variations are easy to understand.

Registration:
Should be done to promote safety in the sport and reduces the chances of cheating by illegally rostering athletes. This also promotes proper documentation of athlete credentials for safety.

Scoring:
There should not be wide variations on what individual skills are worth from competition to competition. It should not matter if you are level 3 or level 6. With standardized scoring across the sport, judging becomes easier to teach and credential and becomes more consistent.

Rules:
Same idea as Scoring. With standardized safety, rostering, competition legality rules the penalties should be understood by all and properly enforced.

Judging:
Lack of standardized judging certification and rules makes it challenging even for good judges to not make mistakes when going from competition A one weekend to competition B the next.

That's my list. Bottom line is that the sport needs to be run by the coaches and athletes not the industry. With a good plan all of these changes can be made with this next rules process and across all levels of cheerleading in the next 2 years, but no one wants to step up and demand the changes happen.

 

[Rockstar]

I agree with most of these points. Really, the word sport is defined as an athletic activity that can but doesn't have to be competitive. Under that definition even sideline cheer counts as a sport. But comp cheerleaders get no love, or at least the proper love. Which bums me out.

Standardization in judging needs to happen, and companies like varsity and jamzbrands are doing that. There's still room to be subjective but that's how it goes. Its weird how team A and team B can go to one comp and place a, b.. Then go to another comp, hit the same routines and finish b, a.

but that's just the nature of the sport sometimes.

I think competition companies could cool it on registration costs. In most cases that's what drives up tuition costs. And for what? So regionals can be in a big arena? If it made cheer more affordable to more kids, I'd gladly compete in a hs gym that's packed with ppl right up to the competition floor.

 

[mommadonna]

I agree with most of these points. Really, the word sport is defined as an athletic activity that can but doesn't have to be competitive. Under that definition even sideline cheer counts as a sport. But comp cheerleaders get no love, or at least the proper love. Which bums me out.

Standardization in judging needs to happen, and companies like varsity and jamzbrands are doing that. There's still room to be subjective but that's how it goes. Its weird how team A and team B can go to one comp and place a, b.. Then go to another comp, hit the same routines and finish b, a.

but that's just the nature of the sport sometimes.

I think competition companies could cool it on registration costs. In most cases that's what drives up tuition costs. And for what? So regionals can be in a big arena? If it made cheer more affordable to more kids, I'd gladly compete in a hs gym that's packed with ppl right up to the competition floor.

Agreed about registration costs. I realize it takes a lot of resources to host an event, but there should be a certain consideration of the people paying the fees. We don't necessarily need a professional DJ and a swanky venue. Just give us a place to do our thing and some great teams and it'll still be awesome. I know a lot of single moms, etc out there who would love to have their kids in cheer but simply can't afford it. I realize some gyms do scholarships, but not all.

 

[12mowerd]

I think people don't consider it a sport because of the cliché that comes with it. ex: short skirts and prancing around is not athletic. non-cheerleaders do not understand the effort that it takes to be a competitive cheerleader.

 

[Rockstar]

a lot of gyms do scholarships, but even so, usually they can only scholarship a few kids a year. and that goes for school programs as well. cheer could be easily half the cost if competition companies werent as greedy

 

[melissaweisberg]

According to any dictionary, cheerleading is technically a sport. In fact, cheerleading is basically considered a sport now. There are still some people who look at cheerleading at football or basketball games and say it's not a sport. And some schools only focus on that type of cheerleading, which really isn't a sport. So, the people that don't consider cheerleading a sport either are unaware of competitive cheerleading, really mean, or are colleges who have to make sports equal for women and men and cut out cheerleading as a sport. So basically, our only job is to spread the idea. We need to show people what we really do or they will forever be ignorant to what really happens when we walk out onto the mat. Getting a little structure in our program wouldn't be such a bad idea either. If we had more structure, then it would be easier to get into the olympics, thus showing the world that cheerleading really is a sport.

 

[megaroo714]

prob because of the way its advertised ... in movies its always the football players girlfriend the peppy cheerleader who sits on the sidelines and shakes her pom poms and yells go team go... they should make a movie where the girlfriend is an all star cheerleader although you'll prob never see her much because she'll be at practice

 

[WorkToWin]

According to any dictionary, cheerleading is technically a sport. In fact, cheerleading is basically considered a sport now. There are still some people who look at cheerleading at football or basketball games and say it's not a sport. And some schools only focus on that type of cheerleading, which really isn't a sport. So, the people that don't consider cheerleading a sport either are unaware of competitive cheerleading, really mean, or are colleges who have to make sports equal for women and men and cut out cheerleading as a sport. So basically, our only job is to spread the idea. We need to show people what we really do or they will forever be ignorant to what really happens when we walk out onto the mat. Getting a little structure in our program wouldn't be such a bad idea either. If we had more structure, then it would be easier to get into the olympics, thus showing the world that cheerleading really is a sport.

I wouldn't say people that don't consider cheerleading are necessarily really mean. We do have things we need to fix as an industry that would help us be more considered as a sport. Like universal scoresheets, coaches certifications, and scoring transparency.

 

[lianne]

prob because of the way its advertised ... in movies its always the football players girlfriend the peppy cheerleader who sits on the sidelines and shakes her pom poms and yells go team go... they should make a movie where the girlfriend is an all star cheerleader although you'll prob never see her much because she'll be at practice

i agree 100%. whenever i say im a cheerleader, people either mention bring it on, fired up, or the dallas cowboy cheerleaders. no im not like that and really no one else is

 

[AaronHilton]

sport/spôrt/

Noun:
An activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others.

CLEARLY CHEERLEADING IS A SPORT BUT PEOPLE DO NOT SEE IT AS ONE WHICH IS STUPID!